James Blake's career has
blossomed in the last year or so. He's managed to
pierce through pop culture in some of the most
unlikely of places. It's a great feeling, when you
find out about an artist, fall in love with their
music, and you watch their impact rise as their
journey matures. We were watching this show on
network television recently called Parenthood,
and we began to hear this unique cover of Joni
Mitchell's "A Case of You" in the background. It was
a dramatic scene (the character reflecting on a
troubled relationship, fraught with alcoholism and
all the turmoil that comes with it). Alexandra (my
wife, whom I used to call the "Queen of A&R", as
she's got an encyclopedic knowledge of all things
related to pop music) immediately identified it as
James Blake. I thought; no way in hell, he's a
dubstep artist (well, shame on me for being so quick
to pigeon-hole Blake that way). She was spot on as
usual, so when Dave Clark and I went record shopping
at
Fingerprints in Long Beach I was pumped to
find the cover on this EP! That song makes this
record worth the money in my book. The rest were a
bonus! The funny thing is: That song is not
indicative (stylisticly) of the rest of the tracks
on this EP. While the Mitchell cover is an
interpretation of a folk classicóthe rest of the EP
is full of subdued electronic music with a touch of
R&B Those familiar with Blake's self-titled LP
should enjoy Enough Thunder (though it gets
even dimmer than his previous work, if that's even
possible).

"Once We All Agree"
opens things up in total darkness. Distant, ambient
pads slap and echo away as Blake pounds out these
haunting piano strokes. His vocal isn't a slice of
sunshine either, and I wondered whether this was
going to be his Sea Change (a gorgeous record
by Beckóone of my favorites in factóbut while it
effortlessly captured a "break up album" mystique, I
admittedly craved some light, a little positivity
after getting through that record). Blake's digging
even deeper into his emotions here, the music sounds
like heartache One of the things that stands out
about Blake's arrangements is his strong grasp of
how to properly use space like any other instrument
(as I stated in the review of his first LP). He uses
silence as a tool, so while his compositions may
sound sparse on the surface it's easy to derive
intense feelings from his music. The openness draws
you in, engages you, and creates this feeling of
intimacy that few artists manage to accomplish.

"We Might Feel Unsound"
sounds like the title suggests. There is an
unnerving shutter about the looped, floating synth
line, weaving in and out of minimal percussive stabs
and vocal samples. Here the music sounds more akin
to Burial than James Blake (the focus is seemingly
pulled off the vocal; while it's certainly present,
it's used more as another compositional element than
it is the focal point of the track. He gets some
help from Bon Iver on "Fall Creek Boys Choir." There
is an r&b-like cadence here, a sort of swing to this
track that, when mixed with Blake's darkened
electronic flavors, sounds like the dubstep version
of a song from D'Angelo's timeless Voodoo
record. "Not Long Now" offers up more minimal
darkness, surrounding his wispy vocals with clicky
drum loops. A nasty bass-line pumps like a kick
drum,
humming and oscillating slowly towards the build-up
of the track. The velocity of the bass pounds but
remains focused (this is a constant in his music:
Tremendous bass that doesn't overshadow the rest of
the elements).

Blake's voice has a
unique character that lends itself perfectly to this
type of music. The timbre can live deep within a
track or seemingly float on-top of it. There's a
caverness quality to it, so things tend to sound a
bit darker at times, but it also accentuates his
vulnerability. There simply isn't anybody that
sounds like Blake (or, I should say, he doesn't
sound like anybody else). Fans of ambient or pop,
dub step, two-step, and whatever the hell step it is
this week, (leaning towards the experimental) should
enjoy Enough Thunder. Be sure your subwoofers
are tuned properly! This music will certainly show
you if your system has a weakness when it comes to
the lower octaves. Fortunately, Blake (and his
engineers) knows how to get the mix right so the
bottom end doesn't trample over everything else.

This music stands out,
and that makes it interesting sonically. What an
enjoyable listening experience, when you find
something that grabs you in a new way. While the
overall theme maybe ambient (or dubstep, whatever
you'd like to call it) there's one thing you hear
without having to over-classify things: It sounds
fresh, plain and simple. At a time where every
product seems like a carbon-copy of the one that
came before it, that's a refreshing journey to take.
If you're a fan of this sound and you haven't heard
of James Blake before: I strongly urge you to check
him out.